SAP CEO Bill McDermott: Machine Learning will Fundamentally Change the Enterprise

CEO Bill McDermott predicted that over the next five to 10 years machine learning, artificial intelligence, and augmented reality will increasingly come to the fore: "I think very strongly that intelligent applications will fundamentally change the way you do work in the enterprise and the way you collaborate with your trading partners outside of the enterprise," he said. McDermott went on to say that machine learning has the capabilities to help businesses make more informed decisions around how they can better serve their end-customer. "We need the system to tell us what to do," he said. "Based on algorithms of that data and inputs that are in that data bank, we need to be able to advise you on the next step for your sales cycle, who you should meet with, and what the expected outcomes are, and what the level of probability would be on you striking a deal." At the same time, McDermott said the appeal of using machine learning as part of business processes is that it will "liberate workers."